


Ring Me Up

by tomatoblues (junhyung)



Category: B.A.P
Genre: Alternate Universe - Convenience Store, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-24
Updated: 2017-03-24
Packaged: 2018-10-10 01:07:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10425846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/junhyung/pseuds/tomatoblues
Summary: Jung Daehyun works at a convenience store.





	

**Author's Note:**

> un-beta'ed

One can tell about a person's life from what they buy at a convenience store.

Jung Daehyun is 24 years old and one of South Korea's many convenience store workers. He wakes up at eight every morning and eats breakfast. He brushes his teeth and washes his face and takes a quick shower and waters the tiny potted plants on the windowsill of his tiny apartment. Ideally, he leaves home for work at a quarter before nine, but Daehyun is not the ideal, timely person, so he usually has at most ten minutes left before his shift starts. He always ends up having to rush to work. Quite thankfully, he almost always manages to arrive at the last minute. It saves him a glare from the middle-aged lady whom Daehyun has the misfortune of meeting nearly everyday because most of his shifts come after hers.

Daehyun's shift starts at nine in the morning till seven in the evening for ten hours straight, no breaks. Today is one of those days. His first customer of the day arrives at a little past nine in the form of a chic Seoulite dressed in a rather eccentric combination of outfit one would have a higher chance of coming across at Garosugil than a typical convenience store. He has on a beanie, an oversized black t-shirt with random writings on it, and a pair of freaking sunglasses that he doesn't bother taking off as he heads right toward the beverage section of the store. His overly tight skinny jeans cling to his ass and thighs and the pair of sneakers he's sporting looks like it could cost Daehyun a whole month of his hourly paycheck.

Weird guy walks up to the register with only one item in hand. Daehyun restrains himself from verbally questioning the guy's fashion choices as he rings the paper cup of ready made americano up and hands it back along with a straw. Judging from the image before him, the guy probably runs an aesthetic Instagram account and has his own Youtube channel where he uploads vlogs and whatnots. Daehyun can't stop the face he makes as he watches Mr. Nice Thighs walk away, slurping at his coffee and looking confident as hell in his extra ass outfit. Well, at least his legs were a pleasure to look at.

Noon finds a customer with dark poodle hair entering the convenience store. He has a kind of laid-back vibe to him that's shown in the relaxed yet charismatic way that he stands as he skims his eyes over the displayed lunch boxes. He's dressed in a button-up and a light coat. He grabs a serving of refrigerated salad, and Daehyun is ready to assume that he's one of those hip vegetarians who listen to songs by underground artists and visit art galleries for the art, but then he gets a slushie and a pack of beef jerky, and, okay, maybe he's still all of that, but definitely not vegetarian.

Daehyun rings his purchases up. The guy politely declines a plastic bag. Daehyun settles with hip conservationist who is chill and knows how to appreciate good music.

At around half past three, Daehyun rings up a travel size toothpaste, sunscreen, and a couple of toilet paper rolls for a cheerful looking guy dressed in a hoodie and shorts. Travelling soon, presumably to some beachy area, Daehyun concludes in his mind from the tiny tube of toothpaste and discounted sunscreen. The toilet papers are for restocking supplies at home—an easy guess; it's a customer favourite.

"Ah, hold on," the guy says, bunny teeth peeking out of the faint smile that crosses his face briefly. He comes back to the counter with canned coffee. Daehyun rings that up, too.

At five o'clock sharp, a student steps into the store. Daehyun wouldn't peg the kid as a student if not for the obvious uniform and classic backpack, considering the boy's unusual height. He looks more like a young overgrown giraffe, and Daehyun notices, as the boy walks down the aisles, that he has on a pair of mismatched socks peeking out of his black trousers. Do schools even allow that?

Daehyun shakes himself out of his train of thoughts as the boy approaches the counter. He rings his stuff up—a bag of chips, some candy bars, two cans of energy drinks, and a small bottle of bubble gums that he picks from the shelf at the counter. Exam week, Daehyun decides, although he's pretty sure the kid can cram better with a nice red apple or a bowl of cheerios.

Several more customers go by before the clock shows ten minutes before his shift ends and Daehyun swings on his feet, absently watching passersby through the large windows. At five minutes before seven, the door slides open and Daehyun looks up to find an all-too-familiar smile directed at him.

"Tired?" is the first thing that Youngjae says as he steps toward the counter, easily placing his hands on the countertop and leaning into Daehyun's personal space.

Daehyun doesn't back off. Youngjae has almost no concept of personal space, so the action isn't something Daehyun hasn't expected. He just smiles back good-naturedly, ignoring the pleasant, loud thumping of his heart in his chest as Youngjae peers at him, lips plump and cheeks soft-looking like something Daehyun would willingly bite into. Or caress. Or kiss. Same thing.

"Five minutes and I'm off," Daehyun announces. It comes out sounding less teasing than he intended.

Youngjae spins on his heels. "Hold on."

Daehyun watches silently as Youngjae walks down the middle aisle, eyes skimming over the assortment of candies and biscuits and snacks. Everyday except for Mondays, Saturdays and Sundays, Youngjae has his shift right after Daehyun's from seven till two in the morning. They could have ended up as nothing more than mere colleagues, but with Youngjae's easy-going nature and his tendency to throw around jokes so effortlessly, they soon become comfortable enough to meet outside of work. It's always great to make friends, especially rare, genuine friends like Youngjae. That is, until it all turns into a sort of fondness that, Daehyun realises with a sinking feeling in his chest, is definitely not platonic.

Which is why Daehyun is rendered speechless when Youngjae comes back to the counter with a bar of chocolate in hand. He's dressed in a casual t-shirt and a pair of jeans, and Daehyun tries not to think of how delectable Youngjae looks in such unremarkable outfit as he stares down at the bar of chocolate on the countertop.

Oh, right. It's Valentine's Day.

There are two reasons to why Daehyun never bothers to remember Valentine's Day. Firstly, nobody buys Valentine's Day chocolates at tiny convenience stores. The larger markets always provide extensively broader ranges of brands and types, so they've stopped restocking Valentine's Day themed chocolates every February. Secondly, Daehyun has not been in a romantic relationship for the last couple of years, so there really isn't a need to pay even the tiniest bit of attention to these Valentine's Day bullshits. Daehyun has more important things to focus on. Like Youngjae. Or Youngjae buying chocolates for a possible girlfriend that Daehyun doesn't know exists.

"I didn't know you've got a girlfriend," Daehyun says, carefully, taking the bar of chocolate and ringing it up for him.

Youngjae slides him a 5,000 won bill. "Because I don't."

Oh. Daehyun fiddles with the register, before handing Youngjae his change. "Buying chocolates for yourself on Valentine's Day, then? You've reached such a new low, dude," Daehyun tries to joke, laughs even, although it comes out as so horribly unfunny he has to suppress the urge to hide behind the counter and never come out again.

Youngjae doesn't seem like he notices Daehyun's tiny moment of embarrassment. "You can keep the change," he says instead, pushing Daehyun's hand away. And then, he adds, "The chocolate, too. You can keep it."

Daehyun looks up and catches Youngjae's gaze. He raises one brow in question, and Youngjae's words ring in his mind as he tries to process them. He can feel a pleasant tingle somewhere behind his ears, the warmth that itches to spread in his chest, and the happy flutters that threaten to blossom in his stomach.

One can tell about a person's life from what they buy at a convenience store.

Daehyun doesn't tear his gaze from Youngjae as he places Youngjae's change on the counter and thumbs at the wrapping of the chocolate. "Are you asking me out?"

It has never been something that Daehyun thinks too much about. Liking someone is normal. Youngjae is definitely not his first; it's not something he's never experienced. So when the realisation dawned in him that he'd developed feelings for Youngjae, it felt almost natural to silently accept it without acting on it entirely, simply brushing it off as one of those occasional fleeting crushes Daehyun's experienced since he turned eleven. It has never occurred to Daehyun, not even once, that Youngjae could, maybe, perhaps, like him back. Daehyun, for obvious reasons, wishes this isn't a dream.

"I am," is Youngjae's frank answer.

This time, when Youngjae leans forward, Daehyun leans forward just the same, almost challengingly. "Two questions."

"Bring it on."

"Are you doing this just so you'll get some chocolates from me in return on White Day?"

"No."

"Is this one of your cunning ways to make me stay and work the first ten minutes of your shift for you?"

The store door swing opens, before Youngjae can answer. Three people dressed in what seem like employee attires huddle into the convenience store. On the wall, the clock strikes seven o'clock. Youngjae turns back to face Daehyun, flashing him a smile that Daehyun finds effortlessly and absolutely gorgeous. "Definitely not."

Youngjae pulls away from the counter with a dashing grin on his face, and proceeds to the staff room. Daehyun watches the customers for a moment, the three strolling unhurriedly from one aisle to another, before entering the staff room himself. Youngjae has just finished slipping on his work shirt when Daehyun closes the door behind him.

The inviting smile on Youngjae's face as Daehyun approaches him, sliding into his personal space easily, is something that Daehyun would like to be directed at him as much as possible just so he can kiss it off his face every time he does.

"Kiss me?" Daehyun asks, wetting his lips as he slips his hands on Youngjae's hips, holding him in place.

Youngjae doesn't look like he needs Daehyun to prevent him from walking away because soon enough, he's stepping in to close the distance between them, his front a hair's breadth away from Daehyun's chest and his individual lashes fluttering softly under the dimmed lighting.

"You said two questions," Youngjae reminds him, tone as teasing as ever.

Daehyun doesn't deny the confidence that overtakes him. He bathes under it, reaching up to place a hand on one of Youngjae's cheeks and brushing the soft skin beneath with the pad of his thumb.

He commands, "Kiss me."

Youngjae breathes out one last breath that fans warmth against Daehyun's cheeks before he leans in to press their lips together.

Kissing Youngjae is a million folds better than Daehyun's imagination of kissing imaginary Youngjae. Youngjae's lips are plump against his, soft and full and yearning and Daehyun is utterly, completely, undeniably head over heels. Daehyun can bet that Yoo Youngjae has the softest lips he's ever kissed, the warmest body he's ever leaned against, the most beautiful sigh he's ever heard. And, God, he smells fucking amazing.

"That was nice," Daehyun breathes out when they've pulled away, resting his forehead against Youngjae's. Being roughly the same height is always a good thing.

"Friday," Youngjae says, palms hot against where they're wandering shallowly over the exposed skin of Daehyun's hip.

Daehyun blinks. "What?"

"Logan is out on the cinemas."

"Oh." Right. Of course.

"Are you free?"

"The 2 p.m. showing. Lunch is my treat."

At that, Youngjae raises an eyebrow.

"You can pay for the movies."

A laugh that rings beautifully in Daehyun's ears as Youngjae lets out a pleased chuckle into his hold.

"Alright." Daehyun steps away. "The customers are waiting. Off you go," he says, patting Youngjae on the butt. The look that Youngjae gives him as he sashays his way toward the door (Daehyun is pretty sure he did it on purpose) makes the happy bees in Daehyun's stomach buzz pleasantly.

Daehyun changes out of his work shirt and hefts his backpack onto his back before walking out of the staff room.

Youngjae is ringing up the three customers' purchases when Daehyun walks toward the glass door that leads out to the streets outside. He tears the wrapping off the end of the chocolate bar in his hand, and, when Youngjae glances at him, bites a chunk off the sugary goodness with what he hopes is a filthy enough smirk on his face.

He really, really can't wait for Friday to come.

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. i am severely uncreative with summaries  
> 2\. this was inspired by a wong fu productions video that can be found [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RboSq7vxKqs)  
> 3\. this was supposed to be less than 1k gdi


End file.
